EMEA Starts Up Without Fees

2 January 1995

The European Medicines Evaluation Agency started work at its London offices this week (January 1) without having received authority from the European Commission to charge fees, following a vote by the European parliament last month to delay passage of enabling legislation for the agency's fee structure until the New Year.

The Commission had sought to get the legislation voted through in the parliament's December session under the legislature's urgency procedures, but the parliament voted against using this procedure after its budget committee proved unable to secure an undertaking from the Commission to include amendments relating to the use of any profits generated by the Agency. The Commission, which expects the agency to become self-sufficient after 1997, is reportedly disinclined to deal with this issue before it actually arises, while Members of the European Parliament say the matter raises a question of principle which is of relevance to European Union agencies in general.

Amendments Agreed By MEPs Would Not Be Binding The MEPs are calling for amendments to the legislation which would require annual forecasts of the EMEA's income and expenditures to be made, and parliament to be consulted on the agency's budget and any changes to the fee structure, but the procedure under which the legislation has been drawn up mean that any amendments passed by the parliament would not be binding. Therefore, following the Commission's refusal to accommodate the budget committee's demands, parliamentarians felt that they had no choice but to vote down proposals to fast-track the enabling legislation through.

This article is accessible to registered users, to continue reading please register for free.  A free trial will give you access to exclusive features, interviews, round-ups and commentary from the sharpest minds in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology space for a week. If you are already a registered user please login. If your trial has come to an end, you can subscribe here.

Login to your account

Become a subscriber

 

£820

Or £77 per month

Subscribe Now
  • Unfettered access to industry-leading news, commentary and analysis in pharma and biotech.
  • Updates from clinical trials, conferences, M&A, licensing, financing, regulation, patents & legal, executive appointments, commercial strategy and financial results.
  • Daily roundup of key events in pharma and biotech.
  • Monthly in-depth briefings on Boardroom appointments and M&A news.
  • Choose from a cost-effective annual package or a flexible monthly subscription
The Pharma Letter is an extremely useful and valuable Life Sciences service that brings together a daily update on performance people and products. It’s part of the key information for keeping me informed

Chairman, Sanofi Aventis UK





Today's issue

Company Spotlight